1. (a) A contract entered into by a governing body and its superintendent is subject to the following conditions:

   1. (1) If the superintendent holds a license under IC 20-28-5 , the basic contract must be in the form of the regular teacher's contract.
   2. (2) The contract may be altered or rescinded for a new one at any time by mutual consent of the governing body and the superintendent. The consent of both parties must be in writing and must be expressed in a manner consistent with this section and section 7 of this chapter.
   3. (3) If the superintendent holds a license under IC 20-28-5 , the rights of a superintendent as a teacher under any other law are not affected by the contract. However, if a right of a superintendent as a teacher under any other law conflicts with the conditions under subsection (b), subsection (b) governs.
   4. (4) For a contract entered into or renewed after June 30, 2017, the conditions set forth under subsection (b).

2. (b) This subsection applies to contracts entered into or renewed after June 30, 2017. A contract entered into by a governing body and its superintendent is subject to the following conditions:

   1. (1) The contract must be for a term of at least one (1) year and not more than three (3) years. However, a contract may be extended for not more than an additional five (5) years beyond the term of the original contract.

   2. (2) If the contract contains a provision that establishes an amount the governing body must pay to the superintendent to buy out the contract, the amount may not be more than an amount equal to the lesser of:

      1. (A) the superintendent's salary for any one (1) year under the contract; or

      2. (B) two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000).

         A superintendent's salary under clause (A) does not include benefits or any other forms of compensation that the superintendent receives as payment under the contract other than the superintendent's salary.

3. (c) This subsection applies to a governing body in which at least one

   1. (1) member is elected. After June 30, 2021, a governing body may not enter into a contract with a superintendent under this section on or after the date of the election for one (1) or more members of the governing body until January 1 of the year immediately following the year of the election. However, this subsection does not apply if the membership of the governing body does not change as a result of the particular election.

      [Pre-2005 Elementary and Secondary Education Recodification Citation: 20-6.1-4-18.]

As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.12. Amended by P.L.167-2013, SEC.6; P.L.233-2015, SEC.213; P.L.208-2017, SEC.3; P.L.155-2020, SEC.12.